Over time, and in particular under the effect of external influences such as light or atmospheric pollutants, the natural color and luster or sheen of the hair is lost or changed. For this reason, hair dyes are in widespread use, either in the hairdressing sector or by home application. For long-lasting, intense colorations having appropriate fastness properties, so-called oxidation dyes are used. Such coloring agents customarily contain oxidation dye precursors, so-called developer components and coupler components, which form the actual dyes with one another under the influence of oxidizing agents or atmospheric oxygen. The oxidation dyes are characterized by excellent, long-lasting color results. For temporary colorings, dyeing or tinting agents which contain so-called direct dyes as coloring component are typically used. In addition to the coloration, lightening or blond shading of the inherent hair color is specifically desired by many consumers, since blonde hair color is regarded as attractive and desirable in terms of fashion. In order to lighten or even bleach substrates, the dyes which color the substrate are decolorized, usually oxidatively, using appropriate oxidizing agents such as hydrogen peroxide.
In the dyeing of hair, in particular the dyeing of hair by home application, the problem arises that natural color shadings are completely covered over, so that multi-tonal colorings are difficult to achieve.
To give the hair a natural appearance, it is proposed to partially decolorize dyed hair by the targeted application of oxidizing agents. The hair sections (“streaks”) to which the oxidizing agents are applied fade, at least in part, in the process, resulting in a multi-tonal hair color. The oxidizing agent is applied with a brush or an applicator, wherein the hair not to be treated is optionally protected from the decolorizing by using aluminum foil or a so-called “higlighting cap.”
Although this type of application solves the problem of achieving the most natural coloring of hair possible, it only allows application of highlights. For lowlights, i.e., darker sections, it is necessary to perform dyeing again. In each case, a time-consuming second decolorizing or dyeing step is required which follows the original dyeing. In particular for home application, it is therefore necessary to initially color all of the hair before highlights or lowlights can be applied by the user. For many consumers, this is perceived to be too time-consuming as well as frustrating, since the essential color-changing step takes place at the beginning and is “corrected” in a second step.
It is therefore desirable to provide a method which allows multi-tonal colorings in a single dyeing step. The aim is that the dyeing of the hair is accompanied by the creation of highlights or lowlights, so that a result is immediately visible after the coloring agent is rinsed out.
Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the invention and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background of the invention.